Leveling Up Through Eating

Chapter 1395 - Side Story 4

Minhyuk was sad. The reason why Haze confidently said that Philos would never be able to run away from home was that they both live in the same house. Could she run away in reality? Of course not. That was impossible.

‘She might not have been able to run away from home but…’

Minhyuk was pacing around with tears in his eyes. When his younger sister emerged from the capsule, she instantly panicked and passed by him, all the while pretending as if she hadn't seen him. However, it seemed like everybody else was on the same page.

–Your Majesty, let’s just keep an eye on Philos for now.

–Philos is going through puberty. It might not be a good idea if we try to catch her and bring her back like that.

–Anyway, there are a lot of people looking after her right now.

It was the truth. In fact, Brod also told Minhyuk this.

–Perhaps we… have spoiled Philos too much. –But Philos is still just a baby?

–That’s not what I mean. I believe it’s time for some distance, for her to grow up, meet new people, socialize, and see the world for what it truly is.

Minhyuk understood what Brod meant. Indeed, if she stayed by their side and continued to be pampered by the strong, there was a chance that Philos’ core values and thinking might become skewed and take a bad direction.

‘They said his name was Hou, right?’

There was a player who was currently accompanying Philos. In a way, Minhyuk was indebted to this player. Furthermore, Minhyuk was the type of person who would repay the grace and kindness he received a hundred times over.

***

Thump!

Someone slammed their glass of beer down and said, “What? You’re going around with a little kid?”

Kim Jin-Seong, or Hou, gulped down his beer. He nodded at his friend and said, “Yeah. She’s a pretty cute kid.”

“Goodness~ You’re really a pushover~”

Even his other friends chimed in.

“You… you’re really a pushover…”

“You still haven’t stopped sticking your nose into others’ businesses?”

“A 200 million gold bill in a restaurant? Who eats that much? You’re crazy. You’ve obviously been scammed!”

Jin-Seong grew furious when he heard his friends’ words. “What are you saying! That kid is not a scammer!”

“Hey, can’t you think for one second? That brat has obviously conspired with the restaurant owner. That kid took your money behind the scenes.”

“I checked the plates of the food that she finished eating.”

“You can easily fake that number!”

Jin-Seong snorted. He did not listen to his friends, who kept on saying that he had been cheated.

Then, one of his friends told him with a somber tone in his voice, “Jin-Seong, from now on, try to stop being nosy. Stop stepping in to help others and see what happens. Just try it for once, okay?”

His friend sighed.

“It’s already been two years since we started Athenae together. But look at us. We’re already over Level 600, and you’re the only one left at Level 300.”

Jin-Seong’s expression grew sullen.

“The reason why you obtained the Knight of Encounter class is because you were being nosy in the first place. Do you think it’s easy to shake hands with strong people?”

Would he be able to shake hands with Hegemon King Ellie just because he wanted to? That was impossible.

“How about dropping the class and starting over? Huh? Just leave the kid behind! Come hunting with us instead!”

Regardless, Jin-Seong had already made up his mind, a protective instinct toward the young girl welling up in him.

“How can an adult ignore a young girl who has run away from home?”

“Haaaa… You’re over! You’re done for!”

His friends raised their hands in surrender.

“Hey. Don’t beg us for gold later because you sold off your equipment to pay for that girl’s meals, huh?!”

“There’s one thing that I guarantee you.”

“What?”

“He’s going to walk around with that brat until he’s forced to shelve Athenae! If he continues to live like a pushover like that, then he will shelve Athenae sooner or later!”

“Shit!”

Jin-Seong jumped out of his seat, his face flushed in anger. “I won’t drink with you anymore!”

Then, he stormed out. Of course, Jin-Seong knew that his friends were just worried about him and were only saying those words out of concern. But what could he do? He just could not change his personality. It was not something that could be changed so easily.

‘But what if that’s really the case?’

Jin-Seong walked home with doubts plaguing his mind. He had always been kind and merciful and had always done things like this in the past. However, this kind of behavior had led him to become a pushover. And it was something that he could not change so easily. Besides, he also had other concerns.

He clenched his fists tightly.

‘How can an adult ignore a child who has run away from home?It seems like I have to stop looking for strong people while I go around Athenae with her.’

In the end, he still decided to log in at the same time as Philos tomorrow and hang out with the child. It was his duty as an adult to lead her safely back to her guardian’s side!

***

Philos was delighted to have met such a kind man. This meant that she no longer had to stay with her oppa, her dads, her uncles, her aunts, and other relatives. Accompanied by Hou, Philos felt that she had successfully run away from home.

Surprisingly enough, her Heart Thief was also triggered and applied to Hou!

“Oh my~ Oh my~ Our Philos is so pretty!” Hou smiled happily as he watched Philos munch on chicken skewers. But that happiness and contentment did not last long.

“Y-you’re done eating already?”

“Yeah! Philos is hungry!”

“Even though you ate 551 chicken skewers?!”

Philos looked at the incredulous Hou, confused. This was because the people around her had always reacted as if her actions and behavior were natural. Then, another unfamiliar scene appeared in front of her.

“H-how much is it?” Hou asked the owner of the chicken skewer stall about the price of the food. His expression clearly showed fear.

Hou ended up patting his pockets when he heard the staggering price. Alas, his pockets were empty. There was no money left. He had used it all to pay off the exclusive restaurant before.

“Eyyy! If you don’t have money, then why do you allow that kid to eat so many chicken skewers?”

“I’m sorry… Sorry…”

Philos looked puzzled. This was the very first time that she had encountered a scene like this.

Hou continued to apologize, embarrassment evident on his face. In the end, he had to pay for the chicken skewers with the items that he had in his inventory.

“Alright, Philos. Let’s go.”

After holding Hou’s hand and walking for a bit, Philos stopped in front of a cafe. She said, “I want to drink something delicious!”

“Oh. Huh? Y-yeah. Al… alright!”

At this moment, Philos should be thinking, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t eat too much?’ But that was not really what was going on in her head. As a patient who suffered from eating addiction, she would always be drawn to food. Again, the situation was repeated in the cafe.

“Uhm, excuse me. I’m sorry, but can I use this to pay instead?”

“What the hell?! You drank our cafe’s best elixir! Do you know how much that is?!”

“Th, then how about this one?”

In the end, Hou had to offer his weapons, his shoulders drooping down both from embarrassment and apology.

When Philos saw him like that, she thought, ‘It wasn’t normal. I had taken things for granted.’

Having someone like her oppa, aunts, and uncles buying things for her was not normal. It was not something that would come easily to everyone. Furthermore, it was not easy to handle someone like her, who could eat hundreds of times more than an ordinary person. At this moment, she realized something.

‘It was something that I should have been thankful for. I should have thanked them every time. Not everyone in the world can pay that much for someone else.’

Learning something new, Philos’ narrow view of the world slowly began to open up.

[You have realized something new.]

[Your registered guardian, Minhyuk, will be notified of your enlightenment and realization.]

Philos grew sad. She wanted to stop eating, but it did not matter what she wanted; she could not stop. Hou, who had accompanied her for a few days, ended up being broke.

“Haaaa…” Hou sighed heavily. He had even sold his armor and weapons.

‘The ones I have equipped weren’t expensive but…’

He was so generous and kind that he ended up saving nothing for himself. Hou was actually the only player at Level 300 who only had one rare artifact to his name. However, that was no longer the case. He had already sold his artifacts and even sold all his normal-rank artifacts too. But it was fine.

“Philos, I will make sure that you get back to your parents safely,” Hou vowed in his white shirt and shorts, a typical outfit worn by novices.

Philos looked up at Hou and slowly let go of her tight hold on his hands. She had learned a lot from this man named Hou. The things she learned were vital for children her age.

“Thank you very much.”

“Huh? Oh…? Are you going back to your guardian now?”

Hou did not accompany Philos to get something out of her. He accompanied her solely because he wanted to see her return safely to the arms of her guardian. But Philos just hugged him.

“No. That’s not it.” Philos looked up at Hou with a soft smile on her face. “During this time, I did not go hungry. And it’s all thanks to you. So, here.”

Philos offered a bundle of cloth to Hou. Through this method, miscellaneous items or money could be transferred out of the inventory and traded with others.

“No, no. It’s fine. I can’t accept this…”

“No. If I receive something from someone else, then I should also give something back. This is something that I learned from you, Uncle Hou!”

Hou smiled awkwardly.

“Uncle Hou, you’re looking for strong people, right?”

“Th, that’s right.”

“You’ll meet them soon.”

Hou thought that Philos was just saying those words as her wish for him.

“Alright. Thank you, Philos.”

In fact, Hou knew that there was nothing more that he could do for Philos. Why? Because he was already stripped down to his underwear!

“Thank you for the lesson that you’ve taught me!”

Just like that, Philos left his side. Hou felt very gratified. This was because he believed that he had done what he intended to do well. Then, he caught sight of the bundle of cloth in his arms. This was what the young girl had given him.

‘Cute. Maybe this will have the small and precious items that she has collected so far?’

[Checking Philos’ Cloth Bundle.]

Ring!

[There are 36 elixirs, 37 God-grade ingredients, 2 God-rank weapons, 6 God-rank armor, 6 God-rank skill books, 8 Agaganium Ores…]

“H… HEOOOOOOOOK?!”

Hou’s jaw almost dropped to the ground. The cloth bundle was filled with items of astronomical value! The value of the elixirs alone could not be measured. Why? Weren’t they just worth ten platinum or so? No, not at all. They were well over a hundred platinum each.

Hou was left stunned and dumbfounded. He just stared at the place where Philos disappeared for a very long time.

Unbeknownst to him, a man was looking down at him from the sky. This man was none other than Evil God Obren. He hurriedly sent a transmission.

***

Hou’s friends have gathered together in a small village.

“You’re here?”

“Yeah. Hey, I heard that Hou had to sell all of his equipment to pay for food?”

“For real?”

“Yep.”

“Arghh! He’s really an idiot!”

His friends stomped on the ground and gnashed their teeth in anger.

“That’s why I told him! He should stop poking his nose into others’ businesses and stop being a pushover!!!”

However harsh their words were, it did not mean that they hated Hou. It was just because they were too worried about their friend.

“This time, I’ll make sure to fix that pushover mentality of his!”

“You’re thinking the same thing, right? That brat definitely scammed Hou!”

“Hey, you’ll definitely know when we see him later. He’s not just scammed, he’s scammed down to his very soul!”

“Just now, I heard that Hou’s wearing shirts and shorts usually worn by beginners?”

They all sighed at the same time.

“Okay, let’s all work together to stop him from being a pushover this time. Also, let’s convince him to give up the Knight of Encounter class.”

No matter how hard they tried to find a solution, they just could not find one. In the end, all they could do was move to search for Hou. After a few moments, they found Hou standing silently on one side of the small village.

One of Hou’s friends raised his hand and called out, “Hou…!”

[The Master of the Western Continents has descended!]

“...?!”

The sudden notification left the entire village abuzz. Even Hou’s friends were in a fluster.

Who was the Master of the Western Continents? He was the one who united the West and assumed the role of two Pillars. He was also Athenae’s Supreme, the strongest player, and the successor of Ilhwa Group. He was the type of person whom these people would typically not meet in their lifetimes.

“It… It’s really Minhyuk!”

“Wow! It’s Supreme Minhyuk!”

“What? Why did Minhyuk come to this small village?”

A crack in space appeared. Then, the strongmen and powerhouses who represented the Beyond the Heavens Empire slowly stepped out into the small village.

“It’s… It’s Spear God Ben!”

“Crazy! Battle God Brod is here too!”

“God of Snakes Elizabeth?!”

“There’s also Absolute Saintess Loyna!”

“The main pillars of the Beyond the Heavens Empire are all present here! What the hell is going on?”

Evil God Obren also appeared in the sky above them.

“Heooook?!”

“Wh-what the hell?!”

“Is there something in this small village?!”

Hou’s friends were left frozen in their tracks. The entire world turned to look at the dozens of people who suddenly appeared in this small village. Then, the Supreme began to head somewhere.

“Oh shit! If I can have a single word with the Supreme, I will die with no regrets in this world!”

The Supreme slowly walked to the place where Hou was standing. Hou’s friends gestured wildly at him when they saw him standing there in a daze.

‘Hey! Hou!!! Get out of the way!’

‘Don’t block the path! Get out of the way! You’ll be in big trouble if you block the path of the Supreme!’

‘Hey! Hey! Quick! Get out of the way!’

Then, Supreme Minhyuk stood before Hou.

“Mr. Hou?”

Everyone looked at Hou and Minhyuk in confusion.

“First of all, I want to say thank you.”

Minhyuk gave a very polite, ninety-degree bow toward Hou.